


ff #6:  Smiles of Note

by SouthernCross



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-23
Updated: 2014-06-23
Packaged: 2018-02-05 20:47:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1831756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SouthernCross/pseuds/SouthernCross
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Life was too short and too precious to waste a moment of it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	ff #6:  Smiles of Note

**Author's Note:**

> prompt fill from tumblr. ff#6 olicity flash fic at smoak & arrow. i own nothing and mean no harm.

He had no idea when he had started to notice the changes between them. John had always been observant, it had kept him alive in Afghanistan and probed valuable as a body guard. Staying quiet, watching the room, seeing how people interacted when they though no one was looking was a valuable skill to possess.

So he had started watching Oliver and what he had begun to see had surprised and delighted him.

The smiles were what he noticed first.

John had not known the Oliver from before, oh he had seen glimpses of the man, boy, he had been prior to the Island. There were times in the club and unexpectedly when cornered by a gold digger that Oliver the playboy would come out in full force.  
There were smiles then; lips stretched wide, impossibly white teeth shining brightly, and not one inch of the stretched muscles reaching the eyes. The eyes that were cold and hard.

Oliver had smiled warmly at his mother, until she broke his heart and trust, and he still smiled that way for Thea. There was an edge to these smiles though. They were ringed with sadness, a smile dipped in guilt and the eyes reflected the pain that he had caused and might cause again. Those smiles John avoided looking at too closely, they tugged too hard at his own heart and memories.

Rarely Oliver threw a smile his way. Not too often at first, those had firmly fallen into the smirk category, but these days he could say in all honesty that he had been on the receiving end of an honest to goodness Oliver smile. And not to wax too poetic about another man, but damn had it felt good to see the smile reach the eyes, and John had known that Oliver had in that moment for whatever reason had been happy.

The smiles of note, the ones that curved Oliver’s lips upward, lifting the sentiment directly into his eyes were reserved solely for Felicity. From the first time Oliver had dragged him down to IT John had been amazed at the interaction between them. Well mostly he had been amused by Felicity’s complete and utter abandonment of a brain to mouth filter and how different Oliver was with her than he was with anyone else.

Oliver listened to her, he talked to her, he connected to her in ways John wasn’t sure he was even aware of. All of which made the smiles sent her way that much more startling. More than anyone John had ever known Oliver kept a tight hold on what he felt and shared, except with Felicity. 

In the face of a smart and sweet IT girl both Oliver and the Hood were as transparent as they came. 

If the smiles weren’t enough to convince John that there was more between his two favorite crime fighting people, there was the touching.

Hand to hand combat aside Oliver spared little or no time for affection with others. Hugs were for trauma, handshakes for business. John could only assume the isolation on the Island had pushed Oliver away from human touch, a defense brought on by loneliness or worse.

Again Felicity was the exception. John had been surprised by the initial hand shake, so formal and unnecessary, but had brushed it off as an impulse. Impulse had become a weak excuse after the second and third shoulder squeeze, the tenth trail from elbow to wrist, and the hugs Felicity threw at Oliver were not pushed awkwardly away but folded into gratefully.

Oliver touched no one else as easily or comfortably as he did Felicity.

And for the life of him John wondered again if either of them knew it. Did Felicity know how sincere Oliver was with her? Did Oliver know how open he was with her? And when had these questions begun to invade John’s mind on the regular.

‘Hey, where did you go,’ Carly stepped up next to him at the counter. Looking over he smiled down at her, picking up the salt shaker he was supposed to be filling.

‘Nowhere,’ but his eyes moved back to the booth he had been observing, once again lost in thoughts he had no reason to be having.  
Carly followed his gaze, her smile was bright. ‘They are too adorable together.’

John’s eyebrows shot up, he looked over at her mouth opening and closing. Carly only laughed up at him,  
‘Please John, she’s crazy about him and he doesn’t know what to do with her.’

A wise and simple summary, John told her just that.

Carly shrugged, shaking her head, ‘Your boy better make a move soon though,’ she pointed a freshly washed knife in their direction, ‘I don’t think she is going to wait around forever and he will never, ever do better than her.’

John was inclined to agree.

And then an idea struck him.

‘They’re in the dark,’ Carly murmured her agreement. Nudging her with his elbow he smiled.

‘How about we help show them the light,’ waggling his eyebrows Carly couldn’t help but laugh.

‘Matchmaker, John, really,’ she laughed?

There were reasons Oliver didn’t want to be in a relationship, John had heard them all, had even agreed with him at the time. Then he thought back to the smiles and the touches and it occurred to him that Oliver was already in a relationship even if he didn’t want to admit it.

The not so graceful reaction to Felicity’s infatuation once upon a time to Barry Allen had been proof of that. 

‘Yeah, I think so,’ maybe they would thank him, if he didn’t take an arrow to the knee, and maybe the two people who were so very important to him might have a chance at happiness, together.

‘I’m in,’ Carly leaned forward arms resting on the counter. ‘What did you have in mind?’

‘I’m thinking we do a little research and recon,’ he put down the salt shaker; taking Carly’s hand he pressed a kiss to her palm. Leading her to the booth Oliver and Felicity were sharing he kicked Oliver out of his seat, insisting the he wanted to sit with his girl.

Carly caught his eye, he winked, they both watch as Oliver not so discreetly draped an arm over the seat behind Felicity, his fingers absently picking at the length of her hair. 

Oh, this was going to be too easy, John opened his mouth to say something, only to feel the pinch on his thigh. Looking over Carly rolled her eyes, mouthing ‘too soon’ and taking over the conversation.

The story was one that was retold over the years, the one John had told as he stood as best man and one that never failed to make his friends smile.

‘We did good,’ Carly stepped up next to him, taking his hand as they watched husband and wife dance together for the first time.

John had watched his friend change and grow as one remarkable woman had entered their lives, Oliver had fought hard against the light she brought, but Felicity had never given up on pulling him from the shadows.

Maybe they would have found their way to each other eventually, but John had seen no reason why a little intervention to move things along was a bad thing. Life was too short and too precious to waste a moment of it.

‘We did real good,’ he agreed.


End file.
